Regan Guilfoyle, a student of the MGSC program, recently published their SURG 560 final report to UBC cIRcle. This report is a summary of the final practicum project “External Validation of an Ethical Framework in Global Surgery” conducted in December 2019.
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Background: The Office of Global Surgery (OGS) at the University of Alberta, set out to develop an ethical framework in global surgery that could be used as a guideline for academic centers wanting to participate in global surgical care. In order, to ensure that this framework is congruent with the beliefs, principles, and priorities of those working in low-middle income settings, the OGS intends to provide an external validation of this framework through a cross sectional study using paper and online questionnaire.
Study Overview: A questionnaire was designed to effectively capture the overarching themes outlined in the ethical framework. The design was based on a literature review conducted with the aid of a librarian at the University of Alberta. Based on the critique of relevant articles, the questionnaire was developed using a two-step approach. Major themes of the Ethical Framework in Global Surgery identified included patient care and delivery, research, teaching, partnerships/collaborations, donation, and environment. Questions were then developed according to these themes. A combination of Likert scale, rank order, and open-ended questions were employed. The questionnaire was distributed to 5 academic expert panelists who had participated in developing the ethical framework. These expert panelists edited the questionnaire for content and comprehension. The revised questionnaire was then submitted for approval by University of British Columbia Ethics Board and the University of Alberta Research Ethics Office.